The Djinni and the Vampire
by Midna3452
Summary: When Darren is out looking for blood, he meets an unexpected person walking along the road. But, this person may not be exactly what he seems... A oneshot from Darren and Bartimaeus' POVs, so it will have two chapters.Cirque du Freak crossover.Please R&R!
1. Darren's POV

**A/N: Hey everyone! Well, I 've been wanting to do this for a long time, and I finally got it all written down! This is a Cirque du Freak/Bartimaeus Trilogy crossover, because after I read these series over again I thought it would be cool to combine them, and this is the result! It is a oneshot, but I wrote it from both Darren and Bartimaeus' POVs, so that's why it will have two chapters. This chapter is in Darren's POV. Oh, and this takes place in the beginning of _Ptolemy's Gate _and between _The Vampire's Assistant _and_ Tunnels of Blood. _Enjoy!

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**The Djinni and the Vampire- Darren's POV**

Geez, I was hungry.

I hadn't had any human blood in a while, and I was once again starting to feel the effects of not drinking blood. Mr. Crepsley had warned me the other day that this was going to happen soon, but, of course, I didn't listen to him.

Okay, okay, I know I _should've_ listened to him, but I'd been really busy lately with the Cirque du Freak! Plus, the vampire had been getting on my nerves, and I really didn't feel like doing what he said, even if it was for my benefit. Defiance? More like stupidity . . .

So there I was, prowling along the side of the road in the shadows, looking for a human I could take some blood from. Mr. Crepsley wasn't with me; I'd snuck out about an hour before he usually woke up, and it was still twilight outside. I was getting pretty annoyed; I'll admit I hadn't picked the busiest road to walk along, but there should've been at least _one_ person out!

Just as I was starting to feel kind of desperate, I spotted someone walking up the road towards me. He looked about my age, maybe a few years older, and he was wearing blue jeans and a gray sweatshirt. As he came closer, I noticed he looked sort of Egyptian- a little out of place where I was staying, but whatever. He was looking at the ground and he had his hands in his sweatshirt pocket. He'd be perfect.

I ducked behind a tree and watched him come closer. I know I didn't have that special knockout gas breath that full vampires had, but I could just hit the kid in the back of the head or something. One little tap wouldn't hurt him, right? I tensed and got ready to spring.

As the boy came closer, I heard him muttering to himself. He was saying something about a, "stupid master," and, "always having to do the stupid work." I had no clue what that was about. When he came right next to where I was standing, I made my move.

The boy whipped around as I jumped out from behind the tree and ran at him, faster than any human could have. I quickly karate-chopped the back of his head, hitting the nerve that's supposed to make you pass out instantly. Before the kid had a chance to react, I grabbed his foot and pulled it up, making the boy fall unceremoniously onto his butt.

I knelt down, thinking the boy had passed out, and started to roll up the cuff of his jeans, exposing the part of his leg just below the knee. Just as I was about to make a small cut with my nail, the boy kicked me in the chest with such force that I yelped and fell back onto the pavement.

"What the heck do you think you're doing?!" the boy yelled.

I groaned and sat up, massaging my shoulder where I'd landed on it. I saw the boy sitting with his legs scrunched up to his chest, glaring at me. I shook my head to clear it, thinking I was still dazed when I saw his eyes. They were a bright, glowing yellow color- not a very common thing to see.

"Well?" the boy said. I just blinked stupidly and he rolled his creepy eyes. "Are you going to tell me why you just tried to knock me out with a karate-chop? You hit the wrong place, by the way. Not that it would've mattered . . ."

"Oh, well, I, uh . . ." I was at a loss of what to say. How do you explain to someone that you just tried to knock them out so you could drink their blood?! Suddenly, the boy cocked his head to one side and looked at me curiously.

"You're not human." He said it as a fact, not a question.

"Wha- no, of course I'm a human! I mean, I, uh-" I blubbered, before he cut me off.

"Don't lie to me. I can see your essence. It may look normal on the first plane, but on the second and third, something's up."

"My . . . my what is what?" This kid was speaking nonsense. He sighed and looked at me like I was an idiot.

"Oh, _come on_. You know, your essence? The stuff you're made of? You have to be able to sense something about me."

"Something like what?" I still had no clue what this guy was talking about. The boy crossed his legs and sighed again.

"Like something . . . off, something not quite right."

"Well . . . I guess . . .," I said. Now that he mentioned it, there _was_ something else weird about him, besides his freaky eyes. He also didn't quite smell like a human, which I would've noticed before if my senses hadn't been fogged by hunger.

"So, what level djinni are you? That is, unless you're a foilot or something. You're not a foilot, are you?" The boy looked at me questioningly.

"Excuse me?" I stared at him like he was crazy. "Did you just insult me?!" I'd never heard of a _foilot_ before, but by the way he said it, it didn't sound good.

"Depends. Are you someone who's worth insulting?" He flashed a grin. "You know, you never _did_ tell me why you tried to attack me a little while ago."

"Um . . . well, you see, uh . . ." I started playing with my hands nervously, trying to think of something to tell him. He stared at my hands for a moment, and then he suddenly snapped his fingers.

"Aha! I got it!" He pointed at me. "You're a vampire!"

"Wha-"

"I knew I recognized that fluctuation in your essence! And there's no mistaking those scars on your fingertips!"

I stared at him, shocked.

"How did you . . . wait- you're not a vampire too, are you?!"

"A _vampire_?! Me?! Please!" The boy lifted his head regally and put a hand to his chest. "_I_ am Bartimaeus of Uruk, fourth-level djinni. Also known as Rekhyt, Sakhr al-Jinni, and Wakonda of the Algonquin, among many other names. I have spoken with many great magicians, such as Solomon and Ptolemy of Alexandria. I am _not_, as you suggested, a vampire. But enough about me . . ." He put his hand down and gazed at me. "What do they call you?"

"I'm, uh, Darren . . . Darren Shan," I replied. Man, this guy sure talked a lot . . .

"Well, 'uh, Darren Shan,' I'm glad I got to talk to you." He smiled. "I haven't met a vampire in over two hundred years!"

"Oh, I'm not a full vampire . . . I'm only a half-vampire."

"Not even a _full_-vampire?! Well, then you must feel especially honored to have met me! Most full-vampires don't even know that we djinn exist! Why,-"

"Excuse me," I cut in. "But what exactly is a djinn? Is it like that guy who's stuck in a lamp, and every time someone rubs it, they get three wishes?" That was the only mention of a djinni I'd ever heard of. Apparently, it wasn't the right one, since Bartimaeus' smile turned to a frown and he glared at me.

"No, that is _not_ the correct definition of a djinni. I don't know why all you humans think of that! I mean, just because one guy got himself stuck in a lamp for all of eternity doesn't mean that the rest of us djinn are stupid enough to do the same!"

"Hey, calm down! You don't have to yell at me!" I said, trying to make him stop ranting. I was almost sorry I'd asked him a question. "I didn't mean to insult you!"

He continued to glare at me for a moment, and then he shook his head and stood up.

"Well, I'd better be going," Bartimaeus said as I stood up as well. "Things to do, people to please. See you around, Darren Shan." He turned away from me and started walking down the road.

"What, you're just going to get up and walk away?!" I asked him. He stopped and turned back to me.

"Yes, that _does_ seem like what I'm doing, doesn't it?" He looked at me like I was an idiot. "Now, if you'll excuse me-"

"But we hardly got to talk!" Even though he was slightly creepy, Bartimaeus seemed interesting. Besides, I hadn't met a kid around my age in _ages_, not including Evra, of course. "Don't you want to know why I attacked you?"

"I think I can take a guess, mister hungry-looking half-vampire."

"Doesn't that freak you out at all?!" I looked at him like he was crazy. Most people I know would be more than a little freaked out if they learned that a vampire attacked them and tried to drink their blood. Well, half-vampire, technically . . . but that's beside the point.

"Truthfully? No, it really doesn't 'freak me out-'" He made air quotes with his fingers. "-at all. Now, can I please-"

"But-"

"For the love of Ptolemy, do you ever stop talking?!" Bartimaeus shouted. I closed my mouth, sorry that I'd made him mad again. "Look, I really have to go!"

"Will I ever get to see you again?!" It was nice to talk to someone who wasn't' part of the Cirque du Freak, and this kid was just going to walk away! Plus, I realized with a sudden jolt, he knew I was a half-vampire! What if he told?! I really didn't believe the whole, "I've been alive for over two hundred years," thing. Maybe that was just a ploy to get information! What if-

"If you're worried I'm going to tell the whole world your secret, it's okay. I have no reason to, so I won't," Bartimaeus said, shrugging and snapping me out of my thoughts.

"Will I ever see you again?" I repeated. I was debating telling him about the Cirque du Freak, but I still wasn't sure if I could trust him or not. Bartimaeus' frown turned into a smile.

"Hmm . . . you'll probably see me, but you won't recognize me," he said cryptically.

"What does that mean?!" I asked. Bartimaeus just grinned wider. He winked, and when I blinked, he was gone. The only thing left was a thin trail of mist that quickly dispersed into the distance.

"What the-" I looked around, but the boy was nowhere in sight. "Bartimaeus?" No response.

"What in the world . . .?" I muttered to myself. I started walking in the direction of the Cirque, wanting to tell Mr. Crepsley what had happened. Maybe _he_ could tell me what a djinni was, if there even was such a thing . . .

I stopped walking when I heard my stomach growl.

_Oh, right,_ I thought. _I never _did_ get any blood . . ._ I changed course, heading in the direction of town, thinking of Bartimaeus and hoping the next person I met didn't have questionable sanity.

All of a sudden, I heard a screeching noise and I ducked as a bat flew over my head. I glanced up and saw it hovering a few feet in front of me.

"Uh . . . hello?" I said, raising one eyebrow. I jumped as the bat screeched again and darted off.

"Hey, wait!" I called, running after it. I don't know why, but I had this instinctual desire to follow it. I ran for a few minutes until I saw it hanging from a tree branch.

"What . . . was that . . . about?!" I panted, trying to get my breath back. I looked in front of me and quickly jumped back further into the shadows when I saw a fairly plump man walking along the road. He was completely alone- a perfect person to take blood from.

"Hey . . . uh, thanks," I said to the bat. It stared at me with its golden eyes, and then it winked and flew off into the darkness,

"Whoa . . . what?!" I said quietly to myself. _Golden eyes? Could that have been . . . no._ I shook my head. I probably just imagined it. As far as I knew, bats didn't wink at you.

I focused my attention on the man walking in the road. I got ready to pounce, finally about to get some long-awaited blood, Bartimaeus' golden eyes still gleaming in the back of my mind . . .

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**A/N: So, what did you guys think? I'll upload Bartimaeus' POV a little later on. Please review**!


	2. Bartimaeus' POV

**A/N: Alright, here's Bartimaeus' POV! Thanks to whoever read this, even though it's in a really obscure place! Oh, and there _are _footnotes at the bottom! It can get a little annoying scrolling up and down, but what's a Bartimaeus story without footnotes?!**

**The Djinni and the Vampire- Bartimaeus' POV**

I was walking along the quiet, seemingly deserted road when the kid attacked. I had been out that night because I had been sent on a mission by my master at the time, Nathaniel (1). Now, you might be wondering, as you humans tend to do, just what exactly the great Bartimaeus had been sent to do this time. Some spying, perhaps? Or maybe to snuff out the life of an opponent?

No, not this time. This time, I had been sent to pick flowers.

You see, my master, in his increasingly questionable sanity, had ordered me to go out and pick some lovely flowers for his desk (2). However, he had told me to take as long as I needed to get only the best flowers, and I was using this order to the fullest.

I had once again taken the guise of Ptolemy, only with a more updated outfit- blue jeans and a grey sweatshirt. I was taking a relaxing stroll down the road, my hands in my sweatshirt pocket.

"Stupid master," I muttered to myself having nothing better to do. "I swear, I've had idiotic masters before, but this guy might just take the cake. 'Go pick flowers' . . . Why do I always get stuck with the stupid jobs?!"

All of a sudden, I saw something move out of the corner of my eye. I turned just as a kid jumped out from behind a tree and ran at me. He hit me in the back of the head with what appeared to be a karate-chop, and then he grabbed my foot and pulled it up, making me fall onto the pavement (3).

The boy then kneeled down in front of me, grabbed one of my legs, and started to roll up the cuff of my jeans, stopping when he got to my knee. I quickly kicked him in the chest and snatched my leg back as the boy let out a squeal and fell back onto the road.

"What the heck do you think you're doing?!" I yelled at him, fixing my jeans and scrunching my legs up to my chest. The boy groaned and sat up, rubbing the shoulder he'd hit against the pavement. He glanced at me, shook his head, and looked at me again, staring at my eyes.

"Well?" I asked when he failed to answer my question. The kid blinked at me stupidly and I rolled my honey-golden eyes. "Are you going to tell me why you just tried to knock me out with a karate-chop? You hit the wrong place, by the way. Not that it would've mattered . . ." I could have just as easily knocked him out, but since I was in a jovial mood that day (4), I decided to let him stay awake.

"Oh, well, I uh . . ." the kid said, looking extremely at a loss of what to say. He also appeared to be hiding something- he was looking a little guilty, too. It was then that I checked him out on the other planes and noticed something odd.

"You're not human," I said, cocking my head and looking at him curiously, trying to figure out what he _really_ was.

"Wha-no, of course I'm human! I mean, uh-"

"Don't lie to me," I cut him off. I hated when people did that. "I can see your essence. It may look normal on the first plane, but on the second and third, something's up." Indeed it was- there was a sort of rippling around the boy's essence on the higher planes, something that humans don't have.

"My . . . my what is what?" He stared at me with wide eyes (5). _I_ stared at him like he was an idiot.

"Oh, _come on_. You know, your essence? The stuff you're made of? You have to be able to sense something about me." Not to brag, but we higher-level djinn tend to give off a very powerful, and noticeable, essence.

"Something like what?" My goodness, was this kid really that dense?!

"Like something . . . off, something not quite right."

"Well . . . I guess . . ." There seemed to be some spark of suspicion in his dark eyes.

"So, what level djinn are you?" I asked. That was my first assumption of what he was- a very low-level form of djinn. "That is, unless you're a foilot or something. You're not a foilot, are you?" I really hoped he wasn't, because I didn't want to think that foilots could have disguises that good.

"Excuse me?" He stared at me like I was crazy. "Did you just insult me?!"

I flashed him a grin.

"Depends," I said. "Are you someone who's worth insulting? (6) You know, you never _did_ tell me why you tried to attack me a little while ago."

"Um . . . well, you see, uh . . ." I watched as the kid started playing with his hands, and then I noticed something odd. He had ten little scars on his hands, one on each fingertip. I _knew_ I'd seen those before, but where?! I just couldn't place it . . . all of a sudden, it came to me with a snap of my fingers.

"Aha! I got it!" I exclaimed aloud, startling the boy. I pointed at him. "You're a vampire! (7)"

"Wha-"

"I knew I recognized that fluctuation in your essence!" Now I finally realized why that had been so familiar. "And there's no mistaking those scars on your fingertips!"

The boy gaped at me, and his expression reminded me of what a mouse might look like if it was staring up at a very large and hungry cat.

"How did you . . . wait- you're not a vampire too, are you?!" he asked.

"A _vampire_?! Me?! Please!"I scoffed. I put my hand to my chest and lifted my head regally. It was time for some introductions. "_I_ am Bartimaeus of Uruk, fourth-level djinni. Also known as Rekhyt, Sakhr al-Jinni, and Wakonda of the Algonquin, among many other names. I have spoken with many great magicians, such as Solomon and Ptolemy of Alexandria. I am _not_, as you suggested, a vampire. But enough about me . . ."I put my hand down and gazed at the boy. "What do they call you?"

The boy had been staring at me, slightly open-mouthed, but he shook his head and blinked when he realized I'd asked him a question.

"I'm, uh, Darren . . . Darren Shan," the boy replied. This boy needed to learn not to use so many verbal fillers (8).

"Well, 'uh, Darren Shan,' I'm glad I got to talk to you," I said with a smile. "I haven't met a vampire in over two hundred years!"

"Oh, I'm not a full vampire . . . I'm only a half-vampire." Well, that was a surprise. I'd only met one other half-vampire in my life before then.

"Not even a _full_-vampire?! Well, then you must feel especially honored to have met me! Most full-vampires don't even know that we djinn exist! Why,-"

"Excuse me," Darren cut me off. How rude. "But what exactly is a djinn? Is it like that guy who's stuck in a lamp, and every time someone rubs it, they get three wishes?"

I frowned and glared at him. Honestly, I don't know how one idiotic djinni got so famous just by getting sealed in a lamp! There are lots of other, more important djinn than him (9)!

"No, that is _not_ the correct definition of a djinni. I don't know why all you humans think of that! I mean, just because one guy got himself stuck in a lamp for all of eternity doesn't mean that the rest of us djinn are stupid enough to do the same!"

"Hey, calm down! You don't have to yell at me!" Darren said, sounding annoyed. "I didn't mean to insult you!"

I continued to glare at him for a moment, my good mood ruined. There was no point in talking to him anymore, so I just shook my head and stood up. I had to finish my task anyway, before Nathaniel started to wonder where I was.

"Well, I'd better be going," I said as Darren stood up as well. "Things to do, people to please. See you around, Darren Shan." I turned and started walking down the road towards a field I had seen a while ago while exploring the area.

"What, you're just going to get up and walk away?!" Darren called after me. I paused and let out an annoyed sigh, and turned back to face him.

"Yes, that _does_ seem like what I'm doing, doesn't it?" I looked at him like he was an idiot (10). "Now, if you'll excuse me-"

"But we hardly got to talk!" Once again, Darren cut me off. What a rude child. "Don't you want to know why I attacked you?!"

"I think I can take a guess, mister hungry-looking half-vampire," I replied, rolling my eyes. Really, it didn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that he'd thought he could drink my blood. Too bad for him.

"Doesn't that freak you out at all?!" He gave me a look like I should be in an insane asylum.

"Truthfully? No, it really doesn't 'freak me out' at all," I said, making air quotes with my fingers. I'd seen much worse than a hungry little half-vampire. "Now, can I please-"

"But-"

"For the love of Ptolemy, do you ever stop talking?!" I shouted. _Three times_ he thinks he can cut me off without me getting annoyed? I don't think so. "Look, I really have to go!"

"Will I ever get to see you again?!" Darren asked, looking at me imploringly. Suddenly, his eyes widened and his mouth opened slightly. I guess he just realized that he'd told me his biggest secret, and he thought I was going to go spill the beans to everyone (11).

"If you're worried I'm going to tell the whole world your secret, it's okay. I have no reason to, so I won't," I reassured him, shrugging. He was lucky he hadn't gotten completely on my bad side, or he'd have been in big trouble.

"Will I ever see you again?" Darren repeated, his dark eyes looking a little sad. I guess he'd taken a liking to me. Well, I couldn't blame him- I _am_ pretty likeable.

"Hmm . . .," I said, my lips curling into a smile. "You'll probably see me, but you won't recognize me."

"What does that mean?!" Darren asked, looking confused. I just grinned wider. I winked, and as soon as he blinked, I dissolved into mist and drifted away into the distance.

I once again started traveling towards my destination, thinking about Darren as I went. I had to admit, I _had_ felt a little sorry for him . . . Many times had I been in a position similar to his (12). I started to wonder if there was anything I could've done for him to help . . .

I glanced up when I heard footsteps coming towards me. I floated over into the shadows and transformed into Ptolemy as I saw a man walking towards me. He was slightly fat, and he was completely alone (13). Hmm . . . maybe I could help Darren a little bit after all . . .

I changed into a bat, a very fitting disguise, I thought. I would just go back, lead Darren to the human, and be off. Very simple. I flew back to where we had been talking, to find that the little half-vampire hadn't moved much.

I screeched and dived towards him. He ducked just in time so I wouldn't collide with his head. He looked up as I hovered a few feet in front of him.

"Uh . . . hello?" he said, raising one eyebrow at me. I just screeched again and flew off, making Darren jump. "Hey, wait!"

He started running after me, just as I'd hoped he would. We traveled for a few minutes and when I found the man again, I stopped and hung from a nearby tree branch as I waited for Darren to catch up.

He paused when he spotted me and leaned against the tree, panting (14).

"What . . . was that . . . about?!" he panted. He glanced in front of him and slipped back further into the shadows when he noticed the man. I saw the spark of understanding in his eyes and he looked back up at me seeming a little confused. I wondered if he remembered what I'd told him earlier about not always looking the same.

"Hey . . . uh, thanks," he said to me. I stared at him for a moment, and I saw his face turn suspicious when he saw my eyes. I winked at him again, dropped from the branch, and flew off into the darkness.

As I flew, I felt happy that the kid was going to be alright. But, I remembered with a grimace, I couldn't relax quite yet- I still had to pick some flowers for my stupid master.

I sighed as best as I could in bat form and headed off towards the field, all the while wondering if I'd ever see the little half-vampire again . . .

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**Footnotes**

1. Also known as John Mandrake. A quick description: fairly short, with greasy black hair and usually seen wearing a tight suit, which he thinks makes him look dashing but it really looks like he has something stuck up somewhere very unpleasant.

2. To which I replied that if he didn't spend all his time holed up in his office, he could see real flowers in the outside world for himself. He answered this by shooting a crippling fire at me which I counteracted with his name and he had to do some extreme acrobatics to dodge.

3. This only happened because the boy had caught me off-guard. Normally, I would have beaten him in about five seconds, but at that time I was a little out of my element.

4. Probably due to the fact that I had the freedom to go wherever I wanted, at least for the moment. See, sometimes having a stupid master can be a _good_ thing. Sometimes.

5. He also looked slightly hungry. Oh, I never _did_ describe him, did I? Sorry, sometimes I forget you humans need descriptions . . . The boy was small, looking about fourteen years old. He had short, black hair, and his skin was very pale. He was also wearing an old, slightly dusty suit.

6. Finally! Some humor, added by yours truly, of course. Man, that conversation was starting to get dull . . . Oh, sorry, was I starting to ramble? I tend to do that occasionally. Continue on!

7. I'd seen those scars nearly 700 years ago. I'd seen them few times after that, but that was the one time that really stuck with me. The vampire had been very young when he was blooded, and he had actually been an apprentice to the magician I was serving at the time- that's how I knew him. I think his name was Paris something or other. Very nice fellow. I wonder if he's still around . . .

8. Aka, world like "uh," "um," "like," and, "ya know," in case you humans didn't, like, know, ya know?

9. Such as yours truly, for instance.

10. I realized that I tended to do that a lot. Of course, he wasn't anywhere close to rivaling Nathaniel in his idiocy, but it was still noticeable.

11. Honestly, would I really do that? . . . You don't have to answer that, by the way.

12. Not necessarily with a thirst for blood, but we'd both been weak and needed something to get our strength back (or in my case, my essence).

13. What an idiot. Didn't he know there were half-vampires about? Personally, if I was a human, I would never walk along a dark, deserted, road by myself at night.

14. He must have really needed blood, if that little run took take much steam out of him . . .


End file.
